Use of Tumor Spheroids for preclinical cancer studies

Akina, Inc. provides several research products including thermogelling scaffold for 3D culture of cells under the trade-name 3DCellMaker (http://www.3dcellmaker.com/). One of the applications of this system is the 3D culture of tumor cells. This is a critical and needed technology especially as one major bottle-neck for development of cancer therapeutics is the lack of a biorelevant bench-top test. For this reason, many proposed cancer therapies progress on and fail at a later state in clinical testing where the cost to human health as well as financial loss is immense. Read more about 3D culture of tumor cells in a very well written review article here: Zhang, Weijie, Ai Zhuang, Ping Gu, Huifang Zhou, and Xianqun Fan. "A Review of the Three-Dimensional Cell Culture Technique: Approaches, Advantages and Applications." Current stem cell research & therapy 11, no. 4 (2016): 370-380. http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/ben/cscr/2016/00000011/00000004/art00009

Abstract: Cell culture is a core and basic technique in biotechnology and is widely applied in biology, medicine, drug research and development. Traditional two-dimensional cell culture methods have undergone great developments. However, with in-depth basic research, higher requirements are needed to better mimic the in vivo environment to accurately observe cell behavior and explore its mechanisms. To comply with this situation, the three-dimensional cell culture technique emerged and has made profound advances in sustaining inherent cell properties. Here, we briefly review the development of this technique, including the main approaches to form three-dimensional microtissues, and its application and potential for future clinical therapies. Keywords: Advantages; applications; scaffold; scaffold-free methods; three-dimensional cell culture”